Thinking back, I realized I haven't talked a lot about my health, including how what I eat has been an impact. It's probably a good time to do that, mostly for my reference.
I was a skinny kid, born in 1950 in Massachusetts. I was also a fat baby, because I was premature, I spent two months in the hospital. My mom told me I was put on a formula to help me gain weight, and I gained too much. I suppose my mom spent my whole childhood making sure I didn't get fat again. I remember being hungry most of the time, but I was also picky. Snacks between meals were frowned upon. I could have a small hand full of grapes, or rarely, a cookie.
After I was married in 1969 I realized my mom no longer had control of my eating, so I would buy a box of cookies and eat the whole box. I went from my high school weight of 128 to 180! That was the only time I weighed that much. Life went on, only I hurt all the time. My knees hurt, my head hurt, I had horrible migraines. After some time of this, a new neighbor taught me to cook from scratch. (My mom always cooked everything from scratch, but first hubby and I were buying packaged foods). For the first time in years, I had no headaches and no pain! When I did have an attack, I discovered the offending ingredient, MSG! Monosodium Glutamate. My weight in those years was about 160. If I went over 165 my knees hurt.
This was the beginning of my food adjustment journey....eliminating MSG and its multiple names. I did not, however, limit carbs or sugar. Those were the days when we got our information from the TV or magazines, and were told fat and salt were bad and grains were good.
In 1994 I had a complete hysterectomy. Oh, the days of denial care in Indiana! I waited a year to get the care I needed because no one would take you in those days, with no insurance. Because first hubby was working, we weren't "poor enough" to get help, and because of the job he had, we had no insurance for months at a time. I was told several times, if I feel like I'm dying, come to the ER, otherwise stay in bed and drink water.
In 1996 I discovered I had breast cancer. They took me off the high dose of estrogen my doctor had put me on after my hysterectomy. Thankfully I had insurance by then. I went through bi-lateral lumpectomy surgery, 6 rounds of chemo and 16 weeks of bilateral radiation. I had no energy. I tried to eat my way back to health, with carb heavy "healthy" foods like rice and beans. I was just more and more tired.
In 2002 I was diagnosed with diabetes and non-alcoholic fatty liver. My liver enzymes were off enough to cause my nurses to freak. I thought I was dying. I was put on Metformin and Glipizide. I stayed on the Metformin. I could not tolerate the Glipizide. I remember one time at the Hammond Clinic I was told my blood sugar was 600. I have no idea how I was still walking. They didn't do anything, no treatment, nothing, I just went home. I had no idea what a blood sugar of 600 meant.
In 2008 I ended up in the ER (we had an HMO denial care plan, so the nurses stood around discussing if I would die if they refused me. They finally let me in after I slumped over in the wheel chair). My issue was severe shortness of breath and chest pain. We all thought I was having a heart attack. I had a heart cath, which only showed a small blockage that didn't need a stent. Turned out it was my asthma spray. New regulation said asthma spray could no longer contain Freon, and I was allergic to my new inhaler. I have quite a bit written about this in my Indiana blog.
At some point my hubby had to stop working and claim disability, so we lost our insurance. I had to go to a sliding scale clinic in East Chicago. I got really good care there. Indiana also started the "Healthy Indiana Plan", which I qualified for. I got the best care in my life from that plan.
In 2013 Mike Pence became governor of Indiana and changed the income requirements for the Healthy Indiana Plan. I no longer qualified. Instead, I needed to buy into the Marketplace. It was expensive. By this time my new hubby had immigrated. We bought the Bronze level plan. At some point hubby needed to see a doctor, so I took him to the Hammond Clinic. He presented his insurance. "We only take Silver and above. We don't accept Bronze," we were informed coldly. Really, Indiana?
August 2014 we moved to California. I tried to buy Marketplace insurance for us there but the state of California sent us ID cards to receive free care from the state, because hubby wasn't working yet. We got good care but quality doctors were 80 miles away.
In July of 2015 I qualified for Medicare. I bought Blue Cross Blue Shield of California plan F medigap. That was the second best care I ever got in my life. When we moved to Wisconsin in 2016 I was able to bring it with me. Plan F pays for EVERYTHING, everywhere, but it was expensive, and getting more expensive every year. Because I needed to also buy a drug plan, my plan F premium plus the cost of medications was becoming more unaffordable. I decided that if my premium and drug cost reached the point they matched the max out-of-pocket on an Advantage plan, I would switch, because I was paying between $3000 and $4000 and seeing my doctor 3 times a year.
In April 2021 my A1C was 9.3. As a reference, 4.5 to 5.6 is normal, 5.7 to 6.4 is considered pre-diabetic, 6.5 or higher is diabetic, and 9.05 and higher is dangerous. I was first diagnosed as diabetic in 2002 and was put on Metformin. For years I was mostly in the 6.1 to 6.4 range. I didn't change my way of eating except to reduce sugar. Insulin resistance was poorly understood and not really taught.
In 2021 I noticed I was having problems with lack of energy and heart palpitations. I decided to modify my diet by changing to whole grain, seed and plant based foods and little or no meat. I thought that might work to boost my energy. I certainly found a plant based diet more enjoyable. I was still getting so tired after eating that I had to crash on the couch for a couple hours. When hubby and I took walks I became exhausted and out of breath, even dizzy. "So this is how it ends?" I thought to myself. At the time my weight was about 148. I was on blood pressure medication along with my other meds.
May 2021 I had an abnormal stress test and in July I had a heart cath. My inability to exercise well, heart palpitations and occasional chest pain were a real concern. Wearing a Holter monitor did not show any real alarms with my heart other than some tachycardia. I was 71, 148 pounds, and diagnosed with heart failure.
In 2022 I switched to Quartz Medicare Advantage Plan. $0 premium, $0 to see my doctor, labs $15 per day, $120 for the ER, no issues getting care. Medications were affordable.
Over time my numbers got worse. I never started Insulin, but the common believe was that diabetes progresses, more medications are added, then one switches to Insulin, then one watches their body slowly die, starting with toe or foot amputations, then blindness, etc. Over the years I was put on Glipizide (Horrible!! Glucose crash, then eat to get out of the crash, then glucose too high), then Victoza (injectable which caused me to take my asthma spray after every shot, finally stopped after a year of it doing nothing but make me sick), Januvia (caused blisters on my feet and hands) and finally Jardiance, which I tolerate and provides moderate glucose control.
All through 2021 and 2022 my A1C was in the 8% range. My doctor threatened to put my on Insulin. My glucose was not under control. One of my diabetic friends had suggested I look into the ketogenic diet. In August of 2022 I stopped eating bread. I started reducing carbs. I didn't know anything about Keto but I tried to make a change. It was SO HARD. I lived on carbs. When I looked at food I always reached for "healthy carbs" before protein.
I decided to do an experiment. I made myself a sandwich with the "healthy" bread, and then tested my glucose right before I "passed out" on the couch. Over 300!!!!! The next day I made my sandwich with white bread. Over 300!!!! What's going on???? I had already stopped eating cookies and candy. I was eating "heart healthy" cheerios. Every time my glucose went up to 300 I took glipizide to bring it down. Then I would hit 88 and would be shaking and "starving". I was always hungry. (Note, I was only taking Glipizide as needed, my doctor is OK with that)
In early 2023 my health insurance offered me to sign up for Virta, a medically supervised program for reducing A1C and/or loosing weight through a way of eating, without adding medications. This program is 100% paid for by my insurance. I signed up, had a virtual interview with a clinician and a doctor, and was accepted into the program. By this time I weighed 138.
Virta sent me an internet connected scale for weighing myself, a food scale, a glucose and ketone meter with supplies, two jars of broth to increase my salt intake, and a bottle of SlowMag magnesium, along with a cookbook to get me started.
It wasn't just bread and cereal I needed to eliminate. Beans, rice, potatoes, root vegetables and fruit (except for a few berries) were also on the chopping block. Also, NO fruit juice! That's just a glass of sugar. No honey! The body uses it as sugar. No more than 30 carbs per day. That was a hard pill to swallow for a carb addict like me. I was "starving"! I had "nothing" to eat!! Ugh The first month was like prison.
A caution when changing one's way of eating is to replace electrolytes. When the body is learning to burn fat for energy instead of relying on carbs (and storing fat on the tummy and hips, related to insulin resistance), it also looses a lot of water and flushes out electrolytes in the process, leaving one feeling dizzy, weak, sick, etc. (Keto flu)
Number one thing I discovered when replacing electrolytes......my heart palpitations went away.
Number two, when the body learns to use fat as fuel a person has more energy and is less hungry.
Number three, weakness on Keto usually means one is dehydrated and needs water and salt.
Number four, Jardiance and Keto both cause water loss, staying hydrated and including salt can't be stressed enough.
Like many people who change to this way of eating, I struggled with foods I missed, but over time I became accustomed to eating this way. I have not eaten a slice of bread since August 2022, but occasionally I eat a small serving of chicken nuggets, which are breaded, when hubby orders a chicken sandwich for himself. Most people will order a hamburger with no bun but I always relied on the bun to hide the hamburger so I could stand to eat it, so that's a no go for me. I buy lean hamburger, even though fatty meat is recommended, and add olive oil or butter. I just can't stand fatty hamburger, or beef with hunks of fat in it.
Since 2002 - regular medications - Metformin & others, Blood pressure, Thyroid, Heartburn, Asthma, A1C through the years, mostly 6.4 but as high as 11.
April 2019 - A1C 7.9
April 2021 - A1C 9.3
June 2021 - energy low, heart palpitations, shortness of breath, puffy ankles, chest pain when climbing hills.
July 2021 - Heart cath,
Results:
- Diastolic dysfunction (lower left chamber is stiff)
- Hypertrophy of inter-atrial septum (fat deposit around my heart)
- Mitral valve disorder (slightly leaky)
- Abnormal stress test (recovery time too long)
- Atherosclerosis of native coronary artery of native heart without angina pectoris (not needing a stent, just improve diet, reduce carbs, exercise more)
- Question....am I in danger of a heart attack? Answer....No, there is nothing about my heart condition that could cause a heart attack.
- Question....will I get better? Answer....through diet and exercise I can get better.
- Question....how do I manage shortness of breath? Answer....stop and rest, keep exercising.
April 2022 - A1C 8.3
August 2022 - follow up with Cardiologist, doing well, no need to come back.
August 2022 - A1C 8.4, weight 148, stopped eating bread and cereal
December 2022 - weight loss of 14 pounds since reducing carbs in August
March 2023 - A1C 7.8, started Virta, weight 134, already in ketosis from carb reduction.
July 2023 - A1C 7.1, experiencing some low blood pressures with dizziness
October 2023 - A1C 6.4, stopped blood pressure medication, BP normal without meds.
April 2024 - A1C 6.8, noticed I have not taken my asthma spray in a year!
May 2024 - ER visit, dehydration, bladder infection, very low blood pressure, given 2 bags of salt water IV, antibiotics.
Oct 2024 - A1C 6.8, weight stable at 130
Health in general, good. Out on walks with hubby, increasing strength and endurance, we walk at a good pace, up and downhill, average one to two miles, no heart palpitations, no shortness of breath, just short stops when ascending hills. Blood pressure is excellent. No ankle swelling, varicose veins have reduced in size (they used to be enormous). Energy is good, fluctuates depending on how well I eat. If I skip eggs in the morning my glucose will rise. If I don't eat enough protein I will feel tired the next day. If I feel weak it means I need salt. I add a 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon LiteSalt (contains potassium) to my water bottle.
Another health change for the better, I have been able to stop taking Omeprazole for heart burn! I had been on it for years. I tried several times to stop taking it. Day one, ok, day two, hell to pay! A couple times I woke up around 3 am choking on Gerd. It was HORRIBLE and scary. No doubt I started taking it when I weighed around 150 pounds but even after loosing weight, I couldn't stop taking it. So one day last month I bought some Pepsid 10mg and a bottle of Tums as back-up. I stopped the omeprazole cold turkey. My stomach hurt, then it boiled, grumbled, cramped, burned, you name it. It hurt all weekend. I took 20 mg Pepsid everyday, and supplemented with Tums when needed. After a week it only burned. After a month it finally shut up. I now have forgotten to take any Pepsid and I'm fine, and if I react to a food (like garlic) I can take a Tums or Pepsid.
So, thinking back to the summer of 2021 when I thought I was speeding downhill to a dismal lack of health, now at the age of 74, in comparison, I think I am at least 5 years younger. I no longer need any blood pressure medication. I haven't taken or needed any asthma spray in over a year (lungs are clear!!), I'm off the heartburn meds. My ankles don't swell. My varicose veins have reduced in size by half. My energy is good. My apatite is good but I still don't prefer protein (I eat it anyway). My glucose is always better if I eat 2 eggs in the morning and a hamburger for dinner. My A1C would be better if I followed this way of eating more closely. I expect to eat this way for the rest of my life.
I have learned that inflammation in the body is real, and eliminating it allows the body to heal.
